Arelon is a country in the southwest corner of the continent of Sycla (which Arelenes call Opelon). It is bounded by mountains to the east and west, rivers to the south, and the Sea of Fjorden to the north. There is a lake near the center of the country, from which the Aredel River flows to the sea. Elantris and its four surrounding cities stand along the river. Arelon’s main religion is Shu-Korath, though other beliefs are tolerated. Arelon is organized into provinces and the major economic activities are farming and trade. We know little about the government of Arelon before the Reod; after the Reod, the merchant Iadon seized power, made himself king, and awarded titles of nobility to gain allegiance from the wealthy.

Ten years before the novel opens, an earthquake shook the southern lands of Arelon and a crevice called the Chasm opened. What caused the earthquake is unclear, though Raoden deduces that the Reod followed the chasm and not the other way around. Raoden also figures out that he needs to add a line to the Aons—completing an abstracted map of Elantris and its satellite cities—to represent the Chasm before their magic will work.